Pasta, potatoes, and provola cheese
Description
Pasta with potatoes and provola, also known as pasta e patate azzeccata, is a classic dish from Campania. Very easy to prepare and full of flavor, this is a simple yet tasty first course that you can serve even when you have guests for lunch or dinner.
Discover all the secrets to making a fantastic pasta with potatoes and provola by following our recipe step by step.
Ingredients
to recalculate the ingredient amounts
- Short mixed pasta 320 g
- Potatoes 800 g
- Provoletta Arborea 200 g
- Pancetta 100 g
- Cherry tomatoes 6
- Celery stalk 1
- Onion 1
- Garlic 1 spicchi
- Basil leaves 8
- Extra virgin olive oil 4 cucchiai
- Gran Campidano 4 cucchiai
- Salt q.b.
- Pepper q.b.
Instructions
Tips
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1
The preparation of pasta with potatoes and provola begins with the sauce. Finely chop the onion, celery, and garlic, then sauté them in a large pot with 4 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil.
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2
Wash and peel the potatoes, then cut them into fairly large cubes. When the sautéed vegetables have slightly softened, add the potatoes to the pan. Cut the pancetta into cubes as well and add it to the sauté. Cook everything over medium heat for a few minutes, then add the cherry tomatoes, washed and quartered. Season the mixture with salt, pepper, and roughly torn basil leaves, and continue cooking.
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3
When the potatoes have softened, add enough water to the pot to cook the pasta, being careful not to add too much. As soon as it comes to a boil, add the mixed pasta and cook for about 11 minutes.
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4
Leave the pasta slightly al dente. When it’s ready, turn off the heat, cut the provola into cubes, and add it to the pasta along with the Gran Campidano cheese, stirring to let it melt and create the characteristic creamy texture of pasta with potatoes and provola. Serve immediately.
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Variations
Pasta with potatoes and provola is a delicious recipe and a variation of the simple pasta e patate, typical of Naples.
For this recipe, in addition to pasta and potatoes, you can get creative in the kitchen and add some delicious cubes of pancetta and provola at the end of cooking. This way, the hot pasta will melt the cheese, which will combine with the pancetta and make your dish gooey and creamy.
To make this version of the recipe using the oven, simply turn off the heat when the pasta has reached a still slightly al dente and with some broth. At this point, add the provola cut into small pieces and transfer everything into a baking dish. Cover the surface with grated Parmesan, pecorino, and a sprinkle of pepper. Bake in the oven for about 10 minutes until golden and bubbly.
If you’re not a fan of the pancetta version, for this dish we recommend adding diced ham instead.
To give the dish a more refined and fragrant touch, you can also add a bit of basil at the end.
Did You Know?
You should know that pasta e patate originated in Naples as a humble peasant dish. and later spread throughout the Italian Peninsula and beyond. As everyone knows, Naples has always been a hub of culinary ingenuity, and since the population was very poor, people often added a few cherry tomatoes.. Today, it is typical to sprinkle Parmesan rinds on top of the pasta.
Many scholars have found the first historical reference to this truly delicious recipe in Vincenzo Corrado’s 1773 book, Il Cuoco Galante.
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